The birds which visit gardens vary in size from the tiny wren to the large collared dove, or if you’re lucky, the kestrel. Feather colours and markings vary widely, from the humble, subdued colours of the dunnock, to two-tone magpies and swallows, to showy finches, tits and wood-peckers and the iridescent green, blue and purple sheen of the starling. Birdsong is also highly variable, from the beautiful flute-like morning song of the blackbird to the harsh rattle of the magpie.

There are species that are loners and species that live and/or nest in colonies. Some, such as the robin, are fiercely territorial whilst others, such as house sparrows, are more communal and like to nest in sparrow terraces.

The disappearance of natural habitats has meant a decline in places for birds to find food, water and suitable nesting sites. Birds initially moved out into hedgerows as ancient woodland was felled by humans for building materials and fuel.

Since then, the intensification of agriculture, that is, the need to get as much productivity from every last centimetre of land as possible, has meant the removal of hedgerows to make fields larger, indiscriminate use of weedkillers and a lack of time spent on maintenance. Since 1945 there has been a dramatic loss of hedgerows throughout Britain. Between 1984 and 1990 alone the loss of hedgerow length in Britain is estimated at 24% (Institute of Terrestrial Ecology).

As well, the widespread private and commercial use of pesticides and herbicides has reduced the number of insects and wild flower seeds available to birds. Birds have now retreated to some of the last remaining sanctuaries - our gardens.

Almost everyone has played a part in intensification of agriculture, usually unwittingly, for example, by demanding low prices for cereals, fruit and vegetables in the shops, so it is important we all do something to make amends.

Gardeners can provide both natural foods and supplementary foods (see 'Feeding'). Creating a layered garden with trees, shrubs, herbaceous plants and leaf litter will provide habitats for a wide range of birds. Don't use pesticides and slug killers as these poison the natural bird foods. Avoid toxic wood preservatives on feeders and boxes.

Install bird boxes. This is ever more important as natural habitats decline. It can also be a useful way of enticing birds away from more problematic sites. Sparrows can be provided alternatives to air vents, for example. However, don't be tempted to peer into nests until the birds have left. Apart from it being illegal to disturb a nesting bird, many adult birds will desert the nest, young birds might jump the nest, and there are videos and TV programmes that use unobtrusive cameras to show what goes on.

Different birds have different dietary requirements. For example, they may eat earthworms (e.g. blackbirds), nuts (e.g. siskins and tits), seeds (e.g. finches), fruit (e.g. fieldfares, thrushes and redwings), meat (e.g. magpies, crows and starlings), fat (e.g. tits, nuthatches and woodpeckers), or insects (e.g. blue tits, swallows).

Birds also have different feeding habits. Some naturally feed in the air (e.g. swallows and house martins), some usually feed acrobatically in trees (e.g. tits and finches), some in bushes (e.g. thrushes) and some are ground feeders (e.g. dunnocks, wrens, fieldfares, redwings, blackbirds and thrushes), though most visit bird tables when food is scarce.

Natural Foods

> seeds - try planting trees such as, birch, ash, beech, alder, larch and pine if you have room, wild flowers such as willowherb, burdock, groundsel, teasel, coltsfoot, dock, dandelion, chickweed and thistles, and cultivated plants such as sunflower, michaelmas daisy, aster, wheat and barley.

> berries & fruit - choose trees such as wild cherry, rowan, bird cherry, crab apple, whitebeam and yew, shrubs such as blackthorn, hawthorn, cotoneaster, pyracantha, elder, wild privet, berberis, black currant, bramble, spindle and guelder rose, and climbing plants such as ivy and honeysuckle. Try not to be too hard on birds which attack fruit - birds eat many of the insects that attack fruit!

> invertebrates - grassy areas will attract ants, worms, leatherjackets, beetles and spiders. Invertebrates will be attracted to trees such as oak, lime and pussy willow (plant away from buildings) and climbers such as ivy. Ponds and bog gardens are also ideal.

Supplementary foods

> when to feed - the advice of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) and British Trust for Ornithology (BTO) is that birds should be fed supplementary food all year round.

Feeding should be regular, ideally in early morning and mid-afternoon (after and before roosting when energy levels need to be replenished) and more often in winter. Birds have a high surface area compared to their body mass and therefore lose heat quickly, particularly at night, and especially in winter.

Some birds might take a while to start coming. However, once they do, they will come to rely on your food provisions and some birds may have formed territories based on them. It is therefore important to keep it up and to ask a neighbour to help or fill a feeder while you’re away.

> food types - seeds and peanuts are ideal. They are full of energy and packed with nutrients such as oils, proteins and minerals, making them an excellent choice of bird food. Seed mixes will attract a wide variety of birds.

> bird feeders - feeders come in many forms. Tubular feeders are hung from branches, wall brackets, or bird tables, or placed on feeder poles. They come in two main types – seed feeders which have feeding ports and mesh peanut feeders. Tubular feeders are aimed at birds such as tits and finches that prefer to feed off the ground. The colour and design of the feeder does not seem to matter, although siskins seem to prefer red feeders. Window feeders stick onto windows so you can watch birds close up and they usually deter large birds. Ground feeders are aimed at ground feeding birds.

Avoid foods containing salt, spices, flavourings and other additives. Don't offer whole bacon or meat containing bones that could splinter or cause choking. Whole nuts should be offered in a mesh feeder so they are taken in smaller fragments to prevent choking. Dessicated foods such as coconut and uncooked rice and pasta can be dangerous as they can swell in a bird's stomach. Avoid hot or mouldy foods. Peanuts are sometimes infected with a fungus which produces a substance called aflatoxin. This can kill birds or cause liver damage. Our peanuts are tested to ensure quality.

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> bird tables - these permit a wider choice of foods to be offered but tend to take up more space unless they are hanging tables. The birds you might see feeding at a bird table include house sparrow, tits, starling, dunnock, robin, songthrush, chaffinch, greenfinch and blackbird. Other visitors might include wren, goldfinch, mistle thrush, nuthatch and greater spotted woodpecker. Redwing, fieldfare, siskin and blackcap might visit in winter. Sometimes less welcome are the more competitive feeders such as magpie, jackdaw, rook, jay, collared dove and gulls. Multiple bird tables are useful if very large and competitive birds are not giving smaller, more timid birds a chance. A roof on the bird table will help keep the elements off the food and keep larger, competitive birds and predators away. Maintenance involves regularly removing uneaten scraps of food and cleaning the table with boiling water to reduce the chances of spreading disease. The best bird tables have a gap allowing you to brush away uneaten food.

A combination of bird feeders, bird tables and ground feeders will attract the widest variety of garden birds. It is important to site bird feeders, bird tables and ground feeders out in the open so feeding birds can see predators. It will also make it more difficult for predators and squirrels to jump onto them. Squirrels go to great lengths to get to bird food. ‘Squirrel-resistant’ feeders will prevent damage caused by their sharp teeth and ‘squirrel-proof’ feeders should keep them out altogether.

> bird hygiene - keep feeding areas clean and move them around to avoid the build up of uneaten foods and faeces which can cause disease.

Water is needed for drinking and keeping clean. A regularly topped up and regularly cleaned bird bath will be well liked. Water is especially valuable in winter if other water sources are frozen. Obviously, do not use salt or antifreeze to keep the water unfrozen (it has been known).

Many garden birds will use nest boxes. Different species are attracted by different styles. There are two broad categories: boxes with an entrance hole and those that are open-fronted. Holed boxes have different apertures to attract different birds: 25mm for coal tits, marsh tits, blue tits, 28mm for great tits and tree sparrows, 32mm for nuthatches and house sparrows, and 45mm for starlings and great spotted woodpeckers. Larger holes may still attract smaller birds so many boxes such as tit boxes are set at 30mm to attract a greater range. Open-fronted nest boxes will attract robins, pied wagtails, blackbirds and spotted flycatchers. Specialist boxes are available. They may be larger and deeper such as those for woodpeckers and starlings or communal, multiple nests such as a sparrow terraces.

As well as having the right design and dimensions, nest boxes need to insulate birds from hot and cold temperatures and provide shelter from wind and rain. They are therefore usually made of wood or 'woodcrete' - an insulating and long-lasting mix of wood and concrete.

Offer nesting materials such as small twigs, fine bark, wool, hair clippings, pet hair, old cushion feathers, straw and dry grass in mesh bags, one hung from a tree and one pinned to the ground.

Nest box cleaning is best done a while after the young birds leave as they may return for a while after fledging. October to December is a good time as the young birds should have left for good and winter roosting and next seasons inspections have not yet begun.

Some birds prefer natural nesting sites such as holly, ash, rowan, hawthorn, blackthorn and ivy. Creating semi-natural habitats such as a woodland edge or hedgerow will be invaluable. Existing dense hedges can be made more inviting by cutting entrance holes in them.

Males and/or females build a nest depending on the species and the female lays eggs. Males and/or females incubate them. Chicks hatch from the eggs and are fed by the male and/or the female depending on the species. They grow rapidly, develop mature feathers and eventually take their first tentative flight, sometimes encouraged by a parent who may even take them on a guided tour of the local vegetation.

Birds need places to shelter from the hot sun, cold winds, frosts and heavy rain. Trees, shrubs, outbuildings, roof spaces and nest boxes are ideal. Robins sometimes forget their territorial behaviour and huddle together in nest boxes in winter.

Natural predators include the wood mouse which eats eggs, squirrels and hedgehogs which eat eggs and nestlings, and foxes, badgers, grass snakes and sparrowhawks which take adult birds. Domestic cats, and to a lesser extent dogs, can be a further nuisance.

Very variable across different species. Some garden birds are common such as the wren, chaffinch and blackbird, some are less common such as woodpeckers and spotted flycatchers, whilst others were once very common and are declining rapidly such as house sparrows and starlings, both of which are on the RSPB red list.

Sparrows and wrens will make use of a dust bath to remove mites. Add sand or ash to a finely raked area of soil or use a bought trough or upturned metal bin lid. Make sure the dust bath is out in the open so birds can see predators coming.

Starlings mimic the calls of other birds and even unnatural objects such as telephones and lawn mowers!

House martins and swallows need over 2500 beaks full of mud to construct a natural nest so consider creating a bog garden!

If a young bird falls from its nest, only move it if it is immediate danger. Otherwise, leave the bird well alone as the parent will often continue to look after it. Some begin to feed themselves. Sometimes a surrogate parent is adopted which will dutifully collect food - even for a bird of a different species if it pesters them!

Attract birds to the garden by providing for their basic needs with bird food, water and nest boxes. Silence and patience are then required if you want to observe outdoors. A sudden, noisy opening of a house door will create a panic so it is best to sit out in the garden a short distance away from a feeding area and wait for the birds to get used to your presence. It's not easy to get close to birds so binoculars are useful and a camera zoom is essential. 'Birding' is a vast subject area and there are books that contain more information.